The Bureau of Engraving and
Printing (BEP) produced 784,010,000 U.S.
banknotes in March of 2008 worth a total of
$13,501,800,000.

March figures reflect a volume increase compared
to the total notes printed in February. However,
the total value is slightly lower. In further
March to February comparisons, for whatever they
may be worth, the BEP reported zero $20s printed
while doubling the amount of $5s produced.

For the final comparison and perhaps the most
interesting, the physical weight of all the
banknotes produced in February was 1,432,122 lbs
or 649,600 kilograms. March notes weighed in at
1,728,446,180 lbs or 784,010 kilograms.

Spread across the 31 days in March and counting
weekends and holidays, the BEP averaged nearly
25.3 million notes per day with a face value of
approximately $436 million.

While that is certainly a lot of cash, the
Bureau of Engraving and Printing indicates 95%
of the notes printed each year are used to
replace notes already in, or taken out of
circulation. If this percentage is run across
the March totals, then "new or extra" notes for
circulation is slashed down to $21.8 million per
day.

The banknotes with stars in their serial number
indicated a "star note". These are replacement
notes for misprinted notes and to also replace
certain serial numbers, like 000 000 000. Star
notes are generally more desirable to collectors
as they are rarer than normal banknotes.